The Dental Office
General Considerations
-Financial
o Financial aspect of putting up a clinic. Do you want a high-end clinic? A
modern clinic? Or just a simple clinic just for you to be able to do the
dental procedures that you will do.
-Convenience/Environment
o Parking slots, proximity to the cities or the other places like malls,
hospitals, or the type of environment that you will work in. Do you want a
rowdy? A crowded? Or quiet and relaxing for your patients?
-Aesthetics/Beauty
o The ambiance. The type of environment the clinic has.
Fundamentals of an Ideal Dental Office
1.
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4.
Reception/Receiving Area
Treatment Room/Operatory
Laboratory Area
Lavatory/Sterilizing Section
Reception/Receiving Area
o Usually the first part of the office. It’s up to you how you design (high end,
modern or a little bit of relaxing ambiance)
o Where the patients are received before treatment/ before they are seated
in the dental office.
o This is the area where the companions can wait while you are treating
your patients.
Operatory
o
o
o
Laboratory
The characteristics of the operatory is that everything should be reached. So all
the instruments that are needed for a certain procedure should be easy access
so that you will not waste a lot of time in preparation of treatment.
You will able to see TV which is connected to your intraoral camera and also
your microscope for certain procedures (microdentistry) a computer is also
found here to check the digital records of the patients.
It is better to have a operatory near the window for good lighting especially
when you are working in crowns for the teeth. In order to see the proper shade
of the crowns/bridges
o
o
o
o
Where you will your crowns / processing of dentures
Where your impression materials (pang sukat) and other laboratory treatments.
Computer and oven for pagluto ng crowns and bridges.
You should make your dental clinic as clean and organized as possible so that it
will be easy for you to locate things.
Lavatory/ Sterilizing Area
o Where you will store your sterilizing instruments
o Computer = for inventory
o It should be as clean as possible since it is sterilizing area
Optional Rooms/Compartments
1. Business Office – if you have a bigger space. This is where you will talk to the
patient regarding the procedures that should be done and billing. You can explain
his case, the amount of money that he/she needs to prepare.
2. Operating Room – Nowadays, some dental clinics have their own operating
rooms. This is where surgeries or specific procedures (general anesthesia) can
be done. Supine Dental chair. The ceiling lights are OR light, meaning it provides
better illumination, better visualization.
3. Recovery Room – after the patient is operated, the patient can be brought to a
recovery room because the drugs that were administered to the patient during
general anesthesia, are still taking in effect. Because of that, they could feel
nausea or vomiting, they can recover in this room until they gain their normal
strength.
4. Dark Room - place where you develop a radiographs/ xrays. However,
nowadays, meron ng developijng box. Just a small box with a red lining where
you can develop small radiographs.
5. Storage Room – rooms for storing equipments that are needed. The other clutter
in your dental clinic. They can be put in the storage room.
Dental Office Floor Plan
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Receptionist and reception can be in one area only
Reception area is where patients can wait until its their turn.
You can have smaller clinic as long as you have the four basic factors.
(Reception, operatory, sterilization and laboratory)
Parts of a Dental Chair
Cuspidor / Spittoon – sink area in layman’s term
Saliva Ejector – It ejects the saliva from the patient’s mouth.
High Vacuum ejector – procedures where high volumes of water/ aerosol are coming
out, you can use this to suction out the fluid or debris.
-Bigger opening so it can suction the debris, not only fluuids.
Bracket Table – instrument table. Where instruments are placed. It is movable.
-Contains the three way syringe (can release air, water or both air and water)
-Controls in dental chair
-Controls in lights (infrared center activated na ngayon, move your hand on the
light and mag oon na, its better to prevent contamination.)
High Speed and Low speed hand pieces – used in restoring teeth. For polishing
after cleaning. It has two heads. The contra angle (90 degree) and straight.
High speed – either 90 degree or 45 degree
Operator’s chair and assistant’s chair
Xray Viewer – button, you can put the analogue for u to be able to see it properly
Foot control / foot pedal - use to control your hand piece. When you press the hand
control, aandar yung hand piece.
Adjunct Tools/ Equipment
1. Intraoral Camera – useful adjunct tool in diagnosing and explaining the case to
the patient. Example, may cavity sa most posterior part ng dentition, its gonna be
hard to explain the patient so with the use of intraoral camera, you can show the
specific area na affected. You can also show the post-operative photo nung teeth
nya.
2. Periapical/Panoramic Xrays – periapical around the apex, panoramic =
malalaki, kita lahat ng teeth sa mouth.
3. Light cure machine – for restoration which activates the blue lights na nag
haharden. It could be wireless or with wire. May controls.
4. Ultrasonic Scalers – for oral prophylaxis. Sa paglilinis ng ngipin. It release very
tiny vibrations to dislodge the plaque.
5. Amalgamator – amalgam mixing. Just press start and it will mix the capsule
rapidly in order to mix the mercury and the alloy. You still need the amalgam well
and the carrier.
6. Cone Beam Computed Tomography Machine – it looks like panoramic however,
it tooks a 3D scan. This is important in surgical cases. Location of vital structures,
the bone supporting the teeth and etc.
Interoral Camera
Periapical/Panoramic Xrays (left- periapical, right- panoramic)
Light Cure Machine
Ultrasonic
Scalers
Amalgamators
Cone Beam Computed Tomography